Want to Own a Masterpiece? Now’s Your Chance to Buy ‘The Scream’

If you’ve got $80 million burning a hole in your pocket and want to own an artistic masterpiece, break out your checkbook. The last version of Edvard Munch’s well-known painting ‘The Scream’ to be in private hands is going on the auction block.

Sotheby’s auction house will do the honors and expects the iconic work to fetch upwards of $80 million or more. It’s one of only four versions of the 1895 painting, and is currently owned by Norwegian businessman Petter Olsen, whose father was a friend and patron of Munch’s.

I have lived with this work all my life, and its power and energy have only increased with time,’ Olsen said. “Now, however, I feel the moment has come to offer the rest of the world a chance to own and appreciate this remarkable work.”

Museums own the other three copies, but this one is considered particularly valuable because it’s done in pastels and is still in the original frame that was hand-painted by Munch himself. In addition, it includes a poem he wrote in which he explains the inspiration behind the work, describing himself as “shivering with anxiety” and feeling “the great scream in nature.”

Proceeds from the sale will go toward building a new museum, art center and hotel in Hvitsten, Norway, where Olsen’s father and Munch were neighbors.